1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to an authentication method for an information apparatus and, more particularly, to a method of initializing an authentication key, such as a password, through an authentication process in a Digital Video Recorder (DVR) that records surveillance video.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, with the wide commercialization of Digital Video Recorders (DVRs), surveillance cameras are installed in places requiring security, capture subjects while zooming in or out on the subjects, and can store the video data of the captured surveillance video in the DVRs.
Such a surveillance camera captures a subject in a corresponding area and outputs the surveillance video of the subject to a DVR at a remote location, and the DVR not only displays the surveillance video, captured by the surveillance camera, on a monitor but also records the surveillance video in a storage medium, such as a hard disk or an optical disk, included in the DVR.
In the DVR, when starting the operation of the system, initializing the system, or inspecting the surveillance video recorded in the storage medium, an authentication key is requested from a user by displaying a screen capable of receiving the authentication key, such as a password, on the monitor, so that unauthorized persons, rather than an administrator, are prevented from accessing the system and the system and data recorded in the system are protected. Furthermore, the administrator may change the authentication key so as to prevent unauthorized persons from using the DVR without permission.
Meanwhile, when the administrator periodically or sporadically changes the authentication key so as to prevent leakage of the authentication key, the case where the authentication key is lost occasionally occurs. When the authentication key is lost, it is impossible to start the system, play back video recorded in the DVR, or control a specific camera.
In the conventional DVR 100, when the administrator loses the authentication key, the administrator solves the problem by resetting the authentication key set in the system using the general password or universal authentication key, provided by a DVR developer, for initializing the authentication key, as shown in FIG. 1.
However, the provided general password may be leaked, either intentionally or unintentionally, so that the problem of initializing or attacking authentication keys, not only in the same set but also in other systems, without permission using the general password or universal authentication key may occur.